Statement of
Sustainability
-
Blackstone
Valley
Tourism
Council
Sustainability
is a process
or state
that can be
maintained
at a certain
level
indefinitely.
However the
only true
characteristic
of the
indefinite
is change.
The
Blackstone
Valley
Tourism
Council
understands
that true
sustainable
practices
rely on
developing a
platform for
elasticity,
or
resiliency,
to the
inevitable
changing
future. The
Council
therefore
aims to
formulate
its unit of
economic
production
as an
adaptable
driver while
sustaining
or improving
its
environmental,
cultural and
economic
systems.
Sustainable
Practices -
Blackstone
Valley
Tourism
Council
How can an
organization
prepare for
its future?
By setting
up a
resilient
and
sustainable
platform
aimed at
organizational
enrichment
and
best-practices
today. The
Council has
designed
itself as a
hub of
sustainable
development
thought: at
the
forefront of
community
resiliency
and economic
vitality, it
has become
an
indispensable
piece of the
analyses and
dissemination
of global
sustainable
practices.
With its
numerous
awards and
recognitions,
white-papers,
journal
articles and
reports
published as
well as
conference
presentations,
the Council
demonstrates
techniques
that are
benchmarked
around the
globe. As
well, the
Council has
looked for
other
revenue-generating
activities
to sustain
itself
during
market
fluctuations:
Sustainable
Tourism
Planning and
Development
Laboratory:
connects the
world’s
scholars,
leaders and
practitioners
of
sustainable
development
through a
series of
interactive
dialogues.
Sustainable
Planning and
Development
Advising:
provides
consulting
services on
how to
approach
sustainable
development
and economic
enhancement
for
communities
looking for
a more
vibrant and
resilient
future.
The
Blackstone
Valley
Legacy
Trust:
obtains
private and
public
financial
support for
future
development
projects for
the benefit
of the
Valley.
Statement of
Sustainability
- Blackstone
River Valley
The
Blackstone
Valley
Tourism
Council
understands
its Unit of
Economic
Production (UEP)
as a
comprehensive
region made
up of nine
distinct
cities and
towns in
Rhode Island
and
connected by
watershed to
Massachusetts,
USA. The
Council
attempts to
reach pure
sustainability
through a
comprehensive
regional
approach
that
identifies,
analyses,
supports and
then
enhances ten
local
conditions.
Only through
this
holistic
methodology
can the
Council
progress
towards
sustainability
of its UEP:
focusing on
enhancing
quality of
life not
through the
current (and
perilous)
paradigm of
pure
economic
growth, but
through
economic
augmentation
and
maturity.
UEP’s 10
Local
Conditions
Social –
Demographics,
Cost of
Living,
Change,
Dissonance
Cultural –
Historical &
Heritage,
Language &
Lifestyle,
Art &
Artifacts,
Multi/Inter-Cultural,
Commercialization
Knowledge –
Information,
Learning,
Blatant vs.
Latent,
Economic –
Enterprise,
Employment,
Entrepreneurship,
Poverty vs.
Livability
vs.
Self-Sufficiency
Ecology -
Recreation, Greenspace,
Pollution
Built
Environment
– Types,
Governance,
Tax Base,
Desired
Conditions
Governance –
Constituency,
Efficiency,
Representative,
Accountability
Leadership –
Youth,
Training
Technology –
Public
Transit &
Transportation,
Communication
&
Information
Technology
Health –
Access,
Environment,
Costs,
Conditions
Due to the
complexity
and
interrelated
conditions
of the
Council’s
UEP,
partnerships
have
developed
with
residents as
well as
local,
regional,
state and
federal
organizations
and agencies
to define
sustainability
through
resilient
terms. This
includes the
development
of the
Blackstone
Valley
Partnership
– a response
to the
‘innovation
imperative’,
designed to
adapt the
region to
the modern
knowledge-based
economy.
Including
partners and
the UEP’s
stakeholders
in the
Council’s
regional
development
pushes aside
the paradigm
of
pure-growth
and gives
depth to
local
conditions
and voice to
grassroots
economic
enhancement.
The Council
sees the
future of
its UEP as
regional
self-sufficiency
while
increasing
quality of
life and
environmental
vitality.
A
Sustainable
Future Using
a Resiliency
Platform -
Blackstone
River Valley
The rigidity
of a plan is
destined to
shatter
under
pressure
from
inevitable
future
trends and
events.
Instead of
‘planning
for change’,
the Council
develops
elastic
platforms
for its UEP
and
organization
based on
possible
future
events; i.e.
fluctuation
of fuel
prices,
natural and
man-made
disasters,
disposable
income
increase in
developing
nations,
etc. These
possible
futures
inform the
Council’s
development
decisions to
prepare the
local
economy,
residents
and
environments
for these
inevitable
fluctuations.
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